Tony Khan on CM Punk: "I Have Nothing But Positive Things To Say About His Contributions."

CM Punk's AEW future has been in doubt for over two months now. The former AEW World Champion delivered an uncensored tirade on the company at the AEW All Out press conference, bashing AEW Executive Vice Presidents Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks, Hangman Page, and former friend Colt Cabana. While a torn triceps was going to prevent Punk from appearing on AEW television regardless, a post-presser backstage fight with Omega and the Bucks added another nail in that coffin. This fight resulted in all four men being stripped of their championships, led to Ace Steel being fired from the company, and kickstarted a third-party investigation into the specifics of the altercation.

Speaking to Inside the Ropes, AEW President Tony Khan once again refused to comment on the matter.

"The whole thing, I was mostly trying not to comment on that whole situation," Khan said. "But I'm wishing everybody the best and hoping for the best for everyone and hoping for the best for AEW and the fans."

Khan doubled down on his no comment stance when Punk in particular was brought up, but did offer "nothing but positive things" when speaking of what the Second City Saint has done for AEW.

"I can't comment on that. I have nothing but positive things to say about the contributions CM Punk has made in AEW on screen and I certainly have a lot of positive things to say about the things he did in AEW to date," Khan said. "But I do understand why you'd ask and I appreciate you asking."

The present-tense nature of Khan's words about Punk make it seem that the door is not completely closed on him showing back up in AEW, but recent reports do make it feel unlikely. Rumblings of a contract buyout have circulated for weeks now, with the reported hold up coming with the no-compete clause. Some have speculated that WWE would come knocking if Punk was a free agent again.

While Punk's next steps won't be completely clear until he heals from his triceps injury, which is set to keep him on the shelf until mid-2023, Omega and the Bucks are set to make their first on-air AEW appearance in over two months this weekend.

Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for updates on CM Punk's professional wrestling future.